Twelfth International Conference on Religion & Spirituality in Society

Abstract

This paper explores the turn in contemporary China of validating past traditions, long denigrated as deterrents to modernization, as resources for a new Chinese identity. China’s long-standing traditions are usually designated in terms of three teachings (san jiao)––Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism––with Confucianism in a position of dominance through most of China’s premodern history. The reemergence of Confucianism in contemporary China is one of the most unanticipated events of the 21st century. It raises some questions, long ignored as irrelevant, regarding the role(s) played by Confucianism in Chinese society, both in the past and as a prospect in the present and future. My study considers these roles, particularly in connection with the neglected or under appreciated role that another ancient tradition, Legalism (fa jia), played as an essential component of the Confucian legacy. In addition, and most importantly, I discuss the revival of this legacy as the true motivation animating contemporary China’s policies, both domestic and international.